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Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Hi.

Stephanie, i've added you to the list.

Since i'm apparently the mad hatter of the teaparty this is what usually happens...
I check who's online at the time and phone them up, if by some circumstance your not in, please give me a call.
That goes for everyone who's not in the initial call by the way.

Then there's some commotion and a short ceremony and PLAY BALL!!

ANd on a side note, since my son ate my teapartypapers, I don't know what tonight's topic is... ops:
but last week we talked about rebirth and such so maybe we'll rebirth that topic...

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Was a wonderful experience getting to share in live conversation with fellow Treeleafers today.

And the Alice in Wonderland metaphor is no joke, Fugen even turns down the lights and fires up the hookah if you stay on long enough :lol:

The ooVoo thing was cool--made me wish I had a webcam, because it was so cool seeing everyone else's facial expressions and reactions.

That said, I tried to see if we could get ooVoo working for Chet after the "Tea Party" was over, and was able to see him (he couldn't see me of course, as I have no cam) but neither one of us could hear each other on audio. I don't know if there was some really simple fix we didn't think of, or if ooVoo is broken for Macs (I noticed nearly all the posts on the official ooVoo forum were Windows-oriented).

As cool as ooVoo was, I think we should stick to Skype if being on ooVoo means some folks are excluded. Skype seems easy-peasy for all involved.

Either way, I plan to be on next weekend too. I appreciate the efforts to set this up, it helps me feel more connected to my sangha-mates (as Walt Whitman would say, my "comrades") and was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Was a wonderful experience getting to share in live conversation with fellow Treeleafers today.

And the Alice in Wonderland metaphor is no joke, Fugen even turns down the lights and fires up the hookah if you stay on long enough :lol:

The ooVoo thing was cool--made me wish I had a webcam, because it was so cool seeing everyone else's facial expressions and reactions.

That said, I tried to see if we could get ooVoo working for Chet after the "Tea Party" was over, and was able to see him (he couldn't see me of course, as I have no cam) but neither one of us could hear each other on audio. I don't know if there was some really simple fix we didn't think of, or if ooVoo is broken for Macs (I noticed nearly all the posts on the official ooVoo forum were Windows-oriented).

As cool as ooVoo was, I think we should stick to Skype if being on ooVoo means some folks are excluded. Skype seems easy-peasy for all involved.

Either way, I plan to be on next weekend too. I appreciate the efforts to set this up, it helps me feel more connected to my sangha-mates (as Walt Whitman would say, my "comrades") and was a lovely way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Yes, I agree... what ever works best for all and with the least amount of intervention. This oovoo experiment was, as said a test to see how it would stand up. Test was a success . Sorry it was buggered for you Chet!** My only issues were caused by the storm thats just now settling. wifi and satellite went down so I lost all connect. Anywho, nice to see some faces real or Lego-like Glad ya made it Stephanie!

Originally Posted by disastermouse

This whole thing has become a source of stress for me. I dread Sundays now because I know you'll be experimenting with yet another program I won't be able to get to work correctly.

Is that your intention?

Chet

**Yeah sorry bout that Chet, Next week we will be testing a unknown windows free ware called Vidz-4-All-Extra-Ad-laiden-Lite, it boasts IRC based chat engine hosted somewhere in Iceland and a Realplayer video codec! Unfortunately the link to the updated codec is broken and ironically the update is needed in order to see OR Hear ... oh and its windows NT only - so...
:twisted: :roll:

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Originally Posted by Shohei

**Yeah sorry bout that Chet, Next week we will be testing a unknown windows free ware called Vidz-4-All-Extra-Ad-laiden-Lite, it boasts IRC based chat engine hosted somewhere in Iceland and a Realplayer video codec! Unfortunately the link to the updated codec is broken and ironically the update is needed in order to see OR Hear ... oh and its windows NT only - so...
:twisted: :roll:

:lol: If you want to see the closest real-life approximation of the Tasmanian Devil from Looney Toons that is possible to be seen, tell that to Chet when you've got him on the other end of a webcam :lol:

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Looking forward to more cheery talks about things like youth-in-asia. Maybe we could talk about embalming this week? :twisted: I am excited, really I always look forward to these group discussions. No matter the subject.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Hi.

Just a reminder for all those who doesn't know how, pm me your skypename, i'll add you to the list and call you up as the teaparty starts.
If you get on skype after the teaparty starts, just send me a message and i'll let you in.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

I just want to take a moment and post the immense gratitude I feel to be involved with Treeleaf and the inspiration I feel in sharing one another's practice-lives here, which is nowhere more acute than during the Sunday afternoon chats. Everyone's practice--with everyone's different styles, lives, backgrounds, opinions, interests, aesthetics, etc.--inspires me. I learn from everyone here. I feel a sense of camaraderie and comradeship with fellow Treeleafers that I didn't come to feel at centers where I sat alongside, and even did work practice with and talked to, folks every day. I think for all the limitations of the Internet, there's a strange intimacy and openness that it brings too. Everything happens out in the open and the whole community can share in it in a way that normal, non-computerized human interaction actually blocks. In "normal" sanghas, there are cliques and social mazes and a lot that goes on behind closed doors. We can all share in one another's experience here in a remarkable way, I find it very life- and practice-affirming. So thank you to everyone for your practice.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Hey Stephanie,

I'm glad to hear that the discussion today was positive for you and hopefully for the others as well. The last couple weeks I've had a tough time with some of the language and criticisms of people's conduct, but that's my issue and not meant to diminish anyone's practice. It's just not something I deal with very much and my written expression tends to be far better than my speech. That said, I'll hope to see everyone next week and try to speak up some rather than sneaking out the back door.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Dosho,

I wondered what happened to you. The Tea Party is quite an electric gathering of personalities these days... today was intense in an awesome way. I can only speak for myself, but I assume I probably speak for others also when I say I don't mean to be abrasive. Next time we're both on, let me know if I'm saying something that bothers you, I will respect that, listen and respond. I think we have things to learn from one another.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Originally Posted by Stephanie

I think we have things to learn from one another.

Of this I have no doubt whatsoever. And I'm quite sure it's more about me adjusting and allowing for expression that is outside my comfort zone. I'm certainly not a prude who thinks the use of any "salty" language equates to vulgarity. Some of it is probably the result of watching myself around my kids after the 5 year old caught my habit of saying "Jesus Christ" (which he pronounces as "Jesus Crisis"). However, I tell even him that to absolutely forbid the use of any such words is silly and that if he ever witnessed a plane crash or saw Barney blow up he is perfectly allowed to yell, "JESUS CRISIS!" and won't get any scolding from me.

I truly believe there is a time and place for everything, but I usually try to reserve my swearing for the "purple dinosaur explosion" type of moments. However, that's just me and I have to learn to accept how others choose to express themselves. If I ever feel differently during our chats, I will certainly let you know.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

I have been missing The Tea Party the last couple of weeks because I have been using my Sundays to visit The American Museum of Natural History. Today is no exception, but should be my last visit. The funny thing is, I'm not even trying to see the whole museum! Anyway, I have been missing the Tea Party chats and plan to resume weekly involvement next week as part of deepening my commitment to and involvement in the Treeleaf sangha during Ango.

Gassho, and thanks again to all our wonderful priests who have organized this.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Hello everyone,
The idea was raised to put a little posting on this topic each week to let everyone know what we have been up to at our weekly "tea party", so starting this week I (or someone) will be writing a brief summary of our disscussions. This will be helpful to regulars of the tea party who may have missed being there, or to anyone possibly thinking of attending yet not sure what it is all about.

It is a great opportunity to connect live with fellow Sangha members via Skype voice. Every week is different and aside from a simple meal chant at the begining things stay pretty informal.
Every meeting is fluid and changing. I have seen topics range from serious and thought provoking, all the way to just people hanging around and sharing friendly or funny stories. You can talk about any subject of interest to you or just hang back and listen in, its all good .
I personally have learned much just hanging out with the group, and it is always fun.

As for todays meeting, we welcomed a new face (voice actually) to the usual crowd , shared a bit on our Ango experiences, discussed ideas to make the Ango partner selection go smoother, welcomed back Hans who shared news of his trip to Shanghai with us, and spent a good bit of time just generaly visiting and having a good time

Do join us for tea sometime, have a great week everyone.
Gassho ~ Dave.

Re: Sharing Helpful and Insightful Tips (was The Tea Party)

Summary of today's Tea Party chat:

We talked about various aspects of Ango commitments, and our experiences with them.

One topic that generated good discussion was the times of day that people sit. We talked about how people with different personalities, circadian rhythms, etc., might tend to sit more at certain times of day, and this might vary across the population. Some of the people on the chat were "night sitters," some "morning sitters," and even a couple of "noon sitters." We talked about the ideal most likely being to sit both morning and night.

We talked about difficulties with mindful eating, and it was a near universal agreement that people were experiencing more resistance and difficulty with mindful eating than they expected. Saying a verse or verses before eating can feel either self-centered (committing this food to good outcomes or practice) or grandiose (may all beings be nourished by this slice of pizza I am about to eat). And many of us have developed a habitual tendency to eat quickly and/or while in a distracted state.

There was some discussion of fitness practices and dietary choices, different impacts of vegetarianism on different people, eating multiple times a day when dieting or fasting intermittently, and the possibility of incorporating a commitment to regular exercise into an Ango commitment.

There was some discussion of video games, new games coming out and levels of interest in them, and taking a break from video games.

I shared my pastoral fantasy of getting a house with a yard where I could own and raise goats so I could milk my goats in the morning and make my own organic, local goat cheese.

We talked about other pets including cats, dogs, and iguanas, and the appeals and drawbacks of each. Dirk shared that he briefly entertained the idea of raising chickens.

There was a bit of discussion about what role religion plays in our human makeup, reference to levels of religiosity being very low in Sweden and Denmark, and how early religious thinking may have appeared in our human ancestors.

We came up with some Treeleaf t-shirt ideas including "Silence Thread," "I need to go sit with that," and "I need to go shit, sit, and sleep," which was Janne's parting comment :wink: After he left we had a bit of discussion about what it would entail if one were to try to do all those things at one time. We agreed that a padded toilet seat might make that more feasible.

And probably some other stuff too that I've forgotten.

It was a good showing, I think maybe there were eight people involved or so in the chat.